Ceasefire brings little relief from ‘psychological warfare’ for Iranian Americans in Chicago

As President Donald Trump’s threat to destroy Iran gave way to a ceasefire Tuesday, Chicagoans with ties to the country said they felt little relief. Earlier Trump’s words drew criticism from Republicans and Democrats, including Gov. JB Pritzker, who called for the president’s ouster under the 25th Amendment.

Trump had threatened that a “whole civilization will die tonight,” if Iran failed to reach a deal that included reopening the Strait of Hormuz. The two countries reached a ceasefire agreement about 90 minutes before the deadline.

Many details about Tuesday’s ceasefire remain unclear, though it was supposed to open the crucial waterway where about a fifth of the world’s oil is transported under Iranian supervision. Mehrnoush Soroush, a University of Chicago professor from Iran, has gotten used to Trump walking back threats to her home country. Still, those threats are their own form of violence, she said.

“It’s psychological warfare because you’re doing this to millions of people worldwide, it’s not just Iranians,” said Soroush, whose research focuses on anthropology in the region. “Everywhere in the Middle East they’re all freaking out … it’s part of the war scene.”

Mehrnoush Soroush, a University of Chicago professor, has gotten used to President Trump walking back threats against her home country of Iran. Still, the threats of a form of violence, she says.

Just before Trump’s self-imposed deadline, Negar Zadh gathered with a handful of protesters in the Loop to decry the war in Iran. The 32-year-old Chicago resident left Iran about a decade ago, and she hasn’t been able to speak to her father in three weeks.

“As an Iranian, I consider myself privileged if the only suffering of this war for me is gas prices going up or not being able to focus at work,” Zadh said. “I don’t know if my loved ones are alive. I have not lived a normal life in months. … I’m functioning as a paralyzed person.”

Pritzker, U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene call for Trump’s removal

Before the ceasefire was announced, Trump’s rhetoric caused significant outrage. Some called for the invocation of the 25th Amendment, which would allow Vice President JD Vance and a majority of the Cabinet to transfer “an incapacitates President’s powers and duties” to the vice president, according to the Library of Congress.

Pritzker, who is widely seen as a potential 2028 presidential contender, responded to Trump’s latest threat by calling him “a deranged man threatening to wipe out an entire country.”

“It’s past time,” Pritzker wrote on social media. “The 25th Amendment must be invoked.”

Pritzker joined an unlikely alliance of conservatives calling for the president’s removal, including former U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, former MAGA ally and conservative radio host Alex Jones, and conservative commentator Candace Owens. Podcaster Tucker Carlson is also calling on Trump’s Cabinet to reject any plan that would lead to the deaths of Iranian citizens.

Neither Vance nor any other member of Trump’s Cabinet has expressed support for removing Trump from office, so the chances are unlikely.

‘Democracy cannot be built on rubble’

At a Tuesday protest, Sepidh Sanie, a 36-year-old Chicagoan and co-founder of the group Iran Transition Advocacy, said her worst nightmare was the war ending with the regime still in power. She said the regime will do anything to maintain control of the country, even if that means sacrificing its people.

“It’ll be a bloodbath,” said Sanie, referring to the regime’s lethal crackdown on protesters. “With a ceasefire, we don’t know if that means more executions or arrests on civilians. It’s a lose-lose situation.”

While Sanie said Trump initially posed the strikes as a message of hope, Iranian Americans saw through it, but kept quiet to help amplify the voices of Iranians still in the country who were “desperate” for help.

Negar Zadh speaks to reporters Tuesday in the Loop just before Iran and the U.S. agreed to a two-week ceasefire agreement. The 32-year-old hasn't been able to reach her father who lives in Tehran in three weeks. | Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times — Negar Zadh speaks to reporters Tuesday in the Loop just before Iran and the U.S. agreed to a two-week ceasefire agreement. The 32-year-old hasn’t been able to reach her father who lives in Tehran in three weeks.

Zadh agreed and worried that the war damaged the liberation movement’s fight for freedom.

“A military attack has never brought anyone liberation, especially with the current administration not playing by [international law],” she said. “It’s clear to me the objective has never been helping the people of my country. … Democracy cannot be built on rubble.”

For Soroush, the University of Chicago professor, seeing the widespread response to Trump’s threat replaced her anger with pride in her country’s people.

“The [Iranian] civilization and culture of strength is completely in opposition to what Trump was trying to destroy,” she said. “This is what he can’t kill.”

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